"Race" is the most ubiquitous scientific concept that has no basis whatsoever in science. -- Atty. Francis L. Holland.

Friday, February 8, 2008

The Tipping Point, Superdelegates, Obama, Billary and Democracy in America

AAPP: The Democratic Party and/or its Superdelegates, just may try to shut Barack Obama out of the Presidency. It's the color scheme stupid.

The writing is on the wall. Denver may be the scene of another 1968 like Democratic National Convention. That's ifsuperdelegates, party leaders, members of congress and other VIP's get an automatic vote on the Democratic Convention floor for a brokeredconvention. Meaning the winner of the pledged delegates who represent the popular votes across America (which will probably be Obama) loses to the candidate who has the most superdelegates (which will probably be Billary Clinton).So, America, it would appear the Fix just might be in. The Democratic Party and/or its Superdelegates, just may try to shut Obama out of the Presidency. This should alarm the American Democratic electorate. It just may cause a Revolt against the Democratic Party rules not seen since the days of Fanny Lou Hammer and Hubert Humphrey.

But it's just not black bloggers, as John DeSio writes in the Village Voice "Barack Obama’s is locked in a virtual tie for convention delegates with slim delegate lead over Hillary Clinton, but Democratic Party rules could still shut him out of the presidential nomination despite his strong performance in the primaries."

John Desio goes on to write, "At issue are so-called “superdelegates,” former and current elected officials and other Democratic power-players who are appointed as delegates to the party’s national convention and can choose their preferred candidate with no regard for how their state has voted. New York’s superdelegates include, among others, former President Bill Clinton, United Federation of Teachers President Randi Weingarten and every Democratic member of the State’s congressional delegation.

Within the primary voting system Obama has put together a small lead over Clinton, with 635 delegates compared to her 630, according to CNN, though other counts vary. But Clinton has maintained a strong majority of those superdelegates that have made their official pledge, and leads Obama 783-709 when those numbers are factored in (other superdelegate counts give Clinton a larger lead.)

Obama is well aware of the disparity and has sent a message to the Democratic establishment on those superdelegates, stating that they "would have to think long and hard about how they approach the nomination when the people they claim to represent have said, 'Obama's our guy.'" Obama’s message is clear: do not subvert the will of the people.

The superdelegate system used by the Democrats was put into effect during the 1970’s, as a means for party officials to maintain their influence in the face of reforms that arose from the 1972 presidential campaign of former senator and liberal stalwart George McGovern, said Tom De Luca ,a professor of political science at Fordham University.

The superdelegates are bound to nothing but their own opinions, said De Luca, and make up a strong 20 percent of the total Democratic delegate count of 4,049. Should Clinton’s lead among superdelegates vault her to the nomination, despite her defeat to Obama at the hands of the people, it could mean trouble for Democrats in November.

“I think it would be very, very bad for the Democrats,” said De Luca. “It might really demobilize some of the Obama constituency in the November election, which could well be very close.”

Harlem State Senator Bill Perkins was the first New York elected official to forsake his hometown senator and endorse Obama’s campaign, and he too is concerned that the will of the people could be cast aside at the convention, all in the name of party politics. Obama’s campaign is one of hope, said Perkins, and those hopes could be dashed by the superdelegate system, shutting Obama out of his rightful nomination “not on the basis of merit.” More here

Superdelegates

Who: A superdelegate is a Democratic Party representative who carries an independent vote going into a national convention. He or she can be a former elected, or party, official or a current officeholder. A superdelegate is not bound to vote in line with party primary elections or caucus decisions.

How many: The Democratic Party has just fewer than 800 superdelegates headed to the Democratic National Convention in Denver. The exact number of superdelegates is fluid until March 1. They will account for about 20 percent of delegate voting at the convention.

The GOP: The Republicans give each state and protectorate three unpledged delegates: the state party chair, a committeeman and a committeewoman. Also, there are some GOP state parties, such as Colorado's, whose primaries or caucuses are meant to guide pledged delegates but do not bind them to the popular vote.

History: In 1984, Walter Mondale persuaded the Democratic Party to create superdelegates while running as the party's establishment candidate. The Republican system evolved after reforms in both parties in 1972.

Why: Democrats banned winner- takes-all contests in the 1980s to apportion support so that underdog candidates had a fighting chance. But the invention also shelters party front-runners from being overwhelmed by unknown candidates who surge from behind. The real aim is to head off protracted fights on the convention floor, keeping some power for party insiders.